"The last few weeks, we have struggled," he admitted earlier this week. "We need to get the run game going."

McAdoo and his staff have many challenges to face over the bye week as they plan how to get their mess of an offense back on track. Finding a way to revive their league-worst rushing attack should be the top priority.

The Giants are going nowhere if they cannot run the football. Most every issue that plagues their offense - red zone efficiency, third-downs, short yardage, four-minute offense, time of possession - is attributable to an inept ground game.

The Giants struggled to run the ball consistently last season as well. But, like with their red zone offense, what they accomplished in 2015 seems downright elite compared to the results seven games into this year. Despite their issues, the Giants still ran for 80-plus yards in 14 of 16 games last year, finishing the season ranked 18th in rushing offense. They hit 90-plus nine times, and 100-plus four times.

After the first three weeks of this season, it appeared the Giants were making strides on the ground. Their run game was key down the stretch in their Week 1 win over the Cowboys, racking up 113 yards on 24 carries. Week 2 saw a step back against the Saints (32 carries for 64 yards), but the run game came roaring back against Washington, with 120 yards on 21 carries before McAdoo abandoned the run in the second half.

It has been downhill ever since. A representative effort against the Vikings' stout run defense (18 carries for 78 yards) appeared to be a reason for optimism at the time. But in hindsight, it was the beginning of a precipitous decline that has dropped the Giants to their current standing as the NFL's 32nd-ranked rush attack, and also has them dead-last in time of possession (25:57).

Remove the Minnesota game, it's 52 carries for 117 yards (2.25 per) over the last three games. The last two games, 37 carries for 74 yards, for 2-yards per carry.

There clearly is a problem. But what is the road to improvement? "It is not one position, it is not one player, it is a combination of a little bit of everything," McAdoo said. "We are going to look at everything."

Blaming the blocking is an obvious first step. While the core five offensive linemen have had their struggles in run blocking, it's not all on them. The lack of a strong blocking presence at tight end, and the absence of a fullback, certainly don't help the cause. Nor do running backs that fail to hit whatever creases the blocking may present them.

Whatever the issues with blocking, and how much blame is placed on them for the running struggles, the personnel in that department is unlikely to change. The Giants will have to find a solution from within, barring a big trade.

The calls for rookie Paul Perkins have been loud and clear the past few days. McAdoo definitely has to get him more involved in the offense going forward, because he is the only back that has demonstrated any elusiveness so far. Rashad Jennings can still be effective, though, and he's likely a more well-rounded back than Perkins at this point. McAdoo needs to strike the right balance between Jennings and Perkins, with Bobby Rainey as the third-down back and Orleans Darkwa, it appears, out of favor once again.

McAdoo also said his play calling needs to be looked at when evaluating the run game. Running the ball from under center with more frequency would be a good start. The Giants did have success earlier this season running out of the shotgun, though, so that is not the driving issue. Some diversity in what run plays are called could help, though. It's tough to believe the Giants run the same play over and over ... but it certainly looks like that sometimes.

Whatever the problems are, McAdoo and the Giants must fix them. They will always run a pass-first west coast offense, but it's unsustainable to rely solely on the pass. The Giants have to start running the ball credibly and productively, and they need to do so soon. Otherwise, the offense will never get off the ground. Nor will this season.